HUNTSVILLE – Head coach Jason Hooten and the Sam Houston State men’s basketball team made a key addition to their squad earlier this week, signing Bryan High School’s Zach Nutall to a national letter of intent for the upcoming 2018-19 season.

Hooten’s Bearkats have won at least 20 games in four of the last five seasons and are coming off a 21-15 campaign in 2017-18, advancing to both the semifinals of the Southland Conference Tournament and the postseason CIT.

Zach Nutall • 6-3 • 185 • Bryan, Texas • Bryan HSA four-year letterman for the Vikings, Nutall played important minutes as a reserve as a true freshman in 2014-15 before exploding onto the scene as a sophomore and being one of the premier players in the state for the past three seasons.

“We are thrilled to have Zach and his family become a part of our program,” Hooten said upon Nutall’s signing earlier this week. “Zach is a young man that we have coveted since his junior year and we are extremely excited about what the future holds. Zach’s a winner and has a chance to be a tremendous four-year player at Sam Houston.”

The 6-3 guard averaged 18 points and six rebounds as a sophomore and improved upon that as a junior when he averaged 22 points and five rebounds per game on his way to being named to the all-District 18-5A first team in addition to first team all-Brazos Valley.

But he saved his best for last as a senior when he was named the District 18-5A Offensive MVP. He averaged 21 points, seven rebounds and 1.8 steals per game in 2017-18, leading the Vikings to a 27-10 record and to the regional tournament for the first time since 2003 where he scored a game-high 23 points against Fort Bend Elkins in the semifinals.

Along the way he was named to the TABC all-region and all-state teams, as well as being named academic all-state. Nutall earned the MVP award at the Eric Medina Under Armour Tournament as a junior and then also took part in the HABCA all-star game following his senior campaign.

Nutall joins guard Xavier Bryant (DeSoto, Texas/Greenhill Academy), who signed early in November, as signees for 2018-19.